Eagle is a good one 2

 

Griots Garage Care has everything u need. I use them.
http://www.griotsgarage.com/index.jsp

Zymol is also good.

 

id listen to lilsparky when it comes to detailing if i were you....

 

LOL Im no guru, everyones got their own opinions, but Ive come to know and respect 3M and Meguiars due to the fact that I was sent to the BMW school of Detailing down in NJ when I worked for Olympic Auto Shine in Norwood, MA (who subletted the BMW dealer BMW Gallery). Ive seen ALOT of ****ty paint jobs in my time be brought entirely back to life by this stuff.

Most people think that if you just throw a coat of wax onto the car by hand with an applicator, your set to go. All those waxes do is fill in the mirco fine scratches, swirl marks, etc. And what alot of people also dont know is that by consistently reapplying coats of wax on top of one another, your really not doing the car any good. Which is why I recommened a DX 330 type product to remove EVERYTHING off the car, so you can see just how bad the damage is, then assess what steps to take next.

Again...nothing works as good as a rotary when it comes to compounding, polishing, and glazing. Guaranteed if you get a wax grease and tar remover, and take all the wax youve put on the car off it....youll want to cry when you see what it looks like.

 

^^^ you just proved my point^^^

 

Lol fine....you win [8D]

 

Ah, to hell with Meguiars. Just give me some Turtle Wax paste for 2-3 bucks at Wal-Mart.

I'll show you a showroom shine!

 

wo0t, i win

 

Ok, yesterday was beautiful here and I washed the car. I tried the Zymol spray detailer and the Liquid Crystal polish. I had only enough LC to do the hood so I used the Zymol everywhere else. Both did a nice job. Both have thier strong points. We have well water here and it has a white lime or calcium residue when it dries. We have no water softener but it is the best water you have ever tasted. It is not excessiveley hard or high in mineral content. The trick is obviously to wash the car in the shade and dry it with clean towels quickly before you get the little white spots. The spray Zymol lets you not have to get the car completely dry if you start to use it with a little water still on the car. You can just spray it on and keep wiping (rubbing) till dry. It shines pretty well but you gotta keep moving agressively as it dries while you rub and it gets progressively harder to remove. The Liquid Crystal is better if it is applied to a dry, spot free and cool surface. It is a liquid and not a spray and you put it on with a damp rag/towel. Like most waxes, you let it dry, then rub it off. The results were everything I expected though as the shine was brilliant and deep. I really like this stuff.
Something that comes to mind about wheel cleaning is something I'm sure everyone already knows subconciously but may not have given enough consideration. That is, if you are in a big hurry to wash your car and you just drove it, the wheels can be quite warm when you started spraying chemicals on them. This means any clearcoat on them may be softer and nut have the chemical and abrasion resistance it would have when it is cool. So you should wait to do the wheels and/or cool them down with water before putting harsh chemicals on them and stay away from Castrol Super Clean. It's too strong straight up. Very diluted it may be ok.
Anybody got any tricks for cleaning the brake calipers without removing the wheels?

 

Try a small detailing brush with the medium hairs on the calipers. Anything too coarse and you run the risk of scratching them, regardless of their temperature. Just use some wheel acid, and the brush, or just soap and water. Either or will work. With the stock rims this may be quite difficult, because of how large the center of them is. With my rims its not a problem.....However when I had my stock rims, someone left a note on my car when I was working at a dealer that said "CLEAN ME PLEASE! AND MY CALIPERS!" Cause they were such a PIA to get at.

I only use a sponge with soap and water on my rims, When Im done drying the car I go back and clean the rims seperately. Those chemicals do nothing that my hands can't do with a dry soft microfilament towel.